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Prevent obesity, prevent diabetes

It’s a well known fact that obesity is one of the most widespread and most serious health problems that people tend to ignore. Many diseases other than diabetes, such as hypertension and gall bladder problems are also directly related to obesity. The International Diabetes Foundation (IDF) says that, “Diabetes and obesity are the biggest public health challenge of the 21st century.”

Although both diabetes and obesity risk factors are often associated with race, age, and family history, it’s becoming more and more clear that the conveniences of modern life also contribute to the development of both diseases. For example, sedentary lifestyles (reduced physical activity) and the popularity of high fat, high energy diets (think “Super Size Me”) and convenient foods are known to lead to obesity and have also found to be indirectly linked with diabetes (type 2 diabetes).

Studies and surveys show that of the people diagnosed with type II diabetes, about 80 to 90 percent are also diagnosed as obese. This fact provides an interesting clue to the link between diabetes and obesity. Understanding what causes the disease will hopefully allow us to prevent diabetes in the future.

Being overweight places extra stress on your body in a variety of ways, including your body’s ability to maintain proper blood glucose levels. In fact, being overweight can cause your body to become resistant to insulin. If you already have diabetes, this means you will need to take even more insulin to get sugar into your cells. And if you don’t have diabetes, the prolonged effects of the insulin resistance can eventually cause you to develop the disease.

Can insulin cause weight gain?

Weight gain is common in people who take insulin to treat diabetes. That’s because the more insulin you use to maintain your blood glucose level, the more glucose is absorbed into your cells, rather than eliminated by your body. The absorbed glucose is stored as fat, which makes you gain weight. Of course, that just one of the links between insulin and weight gain.

If you have been diagnosed with diabetes, you’ll need to modify your diet accordingly. Otherwise, it’s probable that you’ll gain weight once you begin taking insulin – which will only compound the problem your body already has maintaining proper blood glucose levels, as well as increase your risk of diabetes-related complications.

In reality, once you begin taking insulin to treat diabetes, you really don’t need as much food. Since your body is using the food properly, rather than wasting it, you should discover that you don’t need as much as you are accustomed to eating. Hopefully, modifying your diet will help you prevent the weight gain often associated with taking insulin. In addition, be sure you monitor your blood glucose levels on a regular basis, as recommended by your physician.

Importance of a balanced diet

Importance of a good and healthy diet can therefore never be ignored. Not only does this prevent diabetes and various other obesity related diseases, (many of which are not only incurable, but also life threatening in nature), it can also go a long way in making your life better. Research studies have indicated that what you eat determines how you live. Therefore it is extremely necessary to make sure that not only what you eat is right, but also that you keep your weight in check. To aid in weight loss, a high fiber, low carbohydrate diet and 20 to 30 minutes of moderate activity per day are recommended. Always consult with your physician before beginning any new workout or diet program, especially if you have been diagnosed with diabetes.

Conclusion

And last but not least, to reduce the chances that you will develop diabetes, maintain a healthy weight and increase your physical activity. You may also want to try a diabetes vitamin, specially formulated for people with diabetes.

If you are overweight, even a small weight loss (five to 10 percent) can prevent diabetes – or prolong the chance that you will develop the disease – even if you fall into a high risk category, according to The Obesity Society. And if you have diabetes, this small weight loss can reduce the amount of medication you need, as well as help prevent common complications associated with diabetes, such as blindness, stroke and heart attacks.